


The Stars Beneath

by TheRagdollWrites



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Appropriate Use of the Force, Awkward Flirting, Banter, Developing Relationship, Exploring the Galaxy, F/M, First Kiss, Force Dyad (Star Wars), Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Kyber Crystal, Mutual Pining, Post-Canon, Skinny Dipping, Sleeping Together, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:21:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26222554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRagdollWrites/pseuds/TheRagdollWrites
Summary: Certainly, they need new weapons. But, perhaps even more, they also need respite from battle. A sweet, precious moment off the grid, to be alone together, free of inhibitions, and see how their budding relationship might grow.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 4
Kudos: 36





	The Stars Beneath

**Author's Note:**

> Need some delectable skinny-dipping Reylo? At first, I thought to include this in a larger fic, but it just needed to be its own little self-contained story…
> 
> Inspired by an enchanting trio of paintings by Shaula2a  
> https://www.instagram.com/p/CA0l6O4Kn7-/?igshid=1txjiv15bve8b

“Where shall we go?”

“Somewhere… green.”

“I know a place. Can you swim?”

“You honestly think I can swim?”

“Just asking. No need to tear my face off again.”

Neither of them could spare a thought for the occupation. Not since witnessing the extraordinary way the seemingly untouchable _Eclipse_ star-destroyer had been toppled from the sky, Finn calling scores of troopers to take off their helmets en masse, as he had done mere months ago… and, most astounding of all, Kylo Ren having to publicly have his hand be forced. Rey saw no other way apart from following his lead, which led to both sides of the battle getting to witness the incredible power they shared. The tumult on Coruscant had at last begun to calm down, and Leia called her most trusted fighters to regroup with her. Also, the _Millennium Falcon_ had serious work to do, back in the proud hands of a scoundrel with a cause…

Rey could’ve tried to make a respectable Jedi of herself, as she’d do well to do before rejoining her friends to get the fight finished once and for all. But not when her spirits were nearly exhausted, and she no longer had a suitable weapon. Ben did, incidentally, but he wasn’t sure he could bring himself to use it much longer. Not a horrible, volatile, bleeding thing. Ben was not going to be someone who made an open wound into a source of aggressive audacity and power. His brittle armour had begun to come apart long before the Order tried to take the Capital, but it was the final, definitive moments of the occupation, more than any, that would have Kylo Ren be battered, broken, stripped of whatever vestiges of ego and attitude he had left.

Rey had taken the opportunity to speak for Ben Solo, and it had left her almost adrift, with her newly-unbound other half, between the two sides. His side accusing him of high treason, her side having their trust in her badly shaken.

This really wasn’t a good time to drag him back to his mother. For her safety, as well as their own, they fled. When the time was right, they would both reappear, resolute and united as they had never been before, ready to destroy the shattered remains of the Order, together… this much, they’d sworn to each other…

The small ship Ben had managed to commandeer, a TIE Marauder, which had been customised for safely transporting small groups of valuable people, was fast and quiet, and easy to hide. It got a new, impromptu coat of blue-and-yellow warpaint, in the style of the Walkers and shuttles and other TIEs the rebels had claimed for themselves, and he and Rey took with them only the most essential stuff they could carry on their backs.

No floating devices, though. In their haste, they couldn’t find any. Hopefully, the water they’d encounter wouldn’t be too deep.

“Where are we going to go?” Rey asked for the hundredth time.

“You’ll see, Rey.” The glee in Ben’s answer just seemed to slowly grow each time.

Their hyperspace jump made its climax in the Outer Rim, and beneath their hull, through their observation windows, Utapau gleamed like a massive citrine crystal, a lime-skin pearl of a very rare kind. “What’s your verdict? Green enough for you?”

Rey had seen greener: on romantic, verdant Takodana, and cool, solemn Ahch-To, even a little of zesty Serenei outpost. But there were still overwhelming amounts of greenness she still hadn’t seen, so she was happy to indulge Ben, his rare playful tone impossible to resist. “Aah, it’s too green! What do I do?!”

Ben chuckled, his hand soft and heavy on her shoulder, as she perched by his side. “This is Utapau. It’s wild and peaceful here. Peace that was hard-won, and they won’t give it up for anything.”

“Not even for us?”

“Nope, not even us.”

Rey pulled a spry grin. “Oh, that’s a shame.”

“The Committee leaders will let us do what we want, more or less, unless or until they hear any word of the Order seeking us out. They’ll want every last trace of us out of the system before a single gunner goes off.”

“Will they follow us here?”

“I expect not. The Marauder can cloak itself, remember? And they’ll be busy enough dealing with the mess on the Capital to worry about us.”

“Really?”

He leaned towards her, close enough for his breath to tickle her ear. “Yes, Rey. Nobody need know we’re here. We might have a day here. Or maybe a month. But I intend to make the most of whatever we get.”

Rey’s tone was solemn, but buoyant, and she turned to look her fill of his eyes. “Then I will too.”

Soaring down into Utapau’s atmosphere, Ben and Rey found themselves staring across vast prairies of soft green and bright gold, a hundred-strong herd of wild jamels browsing, before galloping away from the whir of the ship. Great formations of rock blanketed in thick weather-resistant flora, quite unlike the terrains either of them were better acquainted with. For Utapau hosts incredible hyperwind storms, through which trees and towers can’t keep standing. Instead, the people retreated beneath the surface, with the immense underground oceans. Settlements were built into chasms and sinkholes, the giant bones of native creatures proving useful for buildings.

Descending into a wide cavern, lamps signalling the rocky platforms into respective layers. The topmost layers of earth were lined with shacks and cabins, meshed rooftops to shield from the elements, giving way to apartments seamlessly built into the rock.

“I’ve heard there are deposits of kyber around here. But nobody outside of the system has seen them for years, much less made the most of them.”

“Then we must find one, Ben!”

The local people knew of one not far from where they made their approach, and sometimes it was visited by pious religious types, but not terribly often. It was hidden in a glade, a long trek through the wild fringes of the subterranean water.

The Marauder glided slow and quiet along the water’s edge, the green-carpeted rocks rolling past for well over a mile, unbroken. Resputi-seals, basking on the plant-matted beaches, raised their sleepy grey heads at the sight of this strange metal bird flying through the cave. A high outcrop of rock made a good place to land, but when they climbed down, they were surrounded by shimmering green, brackish water, and air perfumed with crisp salt at the topnotes, a heart of fresh sharp flora, and cool earthy warmth at the base. The kelp grew in ribbons and chains and trailing, knotting fingers, climbing and embracing rocks everywhere they could see, strange and beautiful, of a rich variety of mottled greens and deep golds and earthy scarlets. A mossy slime of algae clotted the water’s edge, melting into the green suffusion of the sea itself.

“Ohh…” Rey gazed out around her in awe, even before climbing out from the cockpit. “When I landed on Ahch-To, I’d never seen so much water before… but this is something else.”

“Life can get very strange sometimes,” Ben offered, already standing beside the hull, peering across the bank looking for any breaks in the vegetation.

“Have you been here before?”

“On missions. Short ones at that. Last time Utapau got involved in war, they risked ruining the environment - places like this had been unchanged for centuries, and they’d take even longer to undo the damage. This world is fragile, and I guess they don’t see any point risking it for the sake of war.”

“That’s fair.”

They began to climb down the mound, dished layers of rock widening with each step, until they stood at the edge of lapping green waves, top layers wrinkling and fraying with the rolling of the water.

“How deep is it? You’re taller than me, d’you want to see?”

The Force plucking a pebble from the shore into his hand, Ben peered thoughtfully at the algae, before letting it _plop_ out of his palm, to the bottom. A moment later, he took a heavy, measured step into the water, ripples disturbing the green clots and lapping up his boots, just past his knees. Rey watched him, crouched nervously at the edge, not moving when Ben extended his hand to her.

“It won’t hurt you, Rey.”

She snorted, but tensely unfolded her legs, her grip tight around the strap of her bag, fat and heavy over her shoulders, but her free hand reached for Ben’s.

He’d fixed his oilskin cape over his shoulders before climbing out, in case of any freakish weather, although down here, there’d almost certainly be enough shelter. The cape clung to the surface tension behind him, while each step he made was followed by a swirling path, cutting through the green carpet. Beneath the algae, the water was clear, and dark. Rey kept hold of his hand as she trekked after him, but she couldn’t help gaze at everything around her.

One of the big Resputi-seals on the far bank opened a wide round mouth and yawned, baring rows of short sharp teeth, while another slid ponderously along its belly and into the water, hardly making a ripple. A stork came flapping down from a higher tier in the rock, a tall lanky figure of bony elegance. Its legs and neck and back were leathery black, its long hooked bill fading to silver, but as it stretched its wings out behind, looking for somewhere to land, fluorescent stripes of turquoise flashed on each underside. The pale silhouette of a Nos monster slinked along a few meters away, its huge silvered body like a shimmersilk sash through the watery gloom, and its back breached the surface, all jewelled with fins and spines.

“Let’s keep to the edge. It’ll be easier to dodge anything big that tries ambushing us.”

“Big…?”

Rey was perturbed, but Ben was trying not to snigger; the animals seemed exotic and fierce, but their Force-signatures were peaceful and placid. Indeed, a few yards above them, a small party of Utai quietly filed along a rocky ridge, each one bearing a large basket, and they browsed the foliage looking for the youngest tenderest shoots to harvest.

The water was knee-deep (for Ben; for Rey it was even deeper) to begin with, but after over a half-hour of slow wading, the golden rock face began to give way to long overhanging fronds of vines. The water rose a few inches noticeably fast, and their hands ended up breaking apart with the effort of wading.

“You do know where you’re going, right, Ben?”

“I think so.”

Rey gawped, and then sighed. “That’s not very assuring.”

Behind the tangle of vines, the rock wall rose even higher, beginning to close them into a corridor. “Kyber crystal comes to the planet surface when the surface lets it. A fault line or something like that. But this place doesn’t have too many earthquakes, so the deposits are pretty small and well hidden.”

“Okay… almost all of civilisation’s underground, and they wouldn’t let us fly here if it wasn’t safe, so it’d have to be round here for them to know it’s here at all.”

“Not just that - most of the underground ocean is salt water, but there are springs as well. Wild animals need fresh water, obviously.”

Ben had to stop, the water nearly up to his waist. Drawing in long noisy breaths, he leaned back onto the rock, and turned to see Rey staggering along behind. Algae had smeared up to her elbows, and even left little wave-prints on her chest. When she caught up, she grabbed onto his shoulder, wanting to support herself on him.

Once she’d caught her breath, something caught her eye. Into the rock, someone had carved a circle of seven elegant little diamond-shapes, and a strange, ancient symbol inside them. Rey peered up at it curiously, and Ben craned around to see what she’d seen… and his eyes lit up.

“Told you.”

Rey let a tired smile spread across her face. “Do we have to swim the rest of the way? How much further is it?”

“It can’t be far now.”

“Maybe we should just stay here for a while…”

“I don’t think so. You don’t seriously want to meditate right here? Finding the crystals is just the start of it.”

Instead, Rey wrapped Ben’s wide shoulders in her arms, almost like a sulking child refusing to give up a toy. Ben was bemused, if nothing else. “I know you can’t swim, but you don’t even want to try?”

She tucked her face between fronds of his hair, her nose bumping against the nape of his neck. “Don’t need to.”

He wasn’t entirely sure why… but he had to smile, and silently thanked his hair for being long enough to shroud his ears - they must be turning red. And he reached behind, until his hands took her thighs, just above her knees. It’d only be natural to blush, with the thighs of his sweet lady pressed up on his hips… thankfully, she would not see. So, he held her up as she held on, and they continued their trek as one.

Just past the carving, the rock face, at last, revealed a fissure. An opening just wide enough for a human or two to slip through, with a flow through slowly leading the way for them, and into a channel no more than seven metres wide, and veiled almost completely in shadow. Leaves from the vines grew waterlogged and fell, forming floating islets that broke to pieces as Ben came wading through. Past the puddles of algae and tangling weeds, deep at the murky bottom of the slow river, glints of silver began to glitter. They formed a fractured trail in the riverbed, distorting and wavering with the ripples.

“Stars in the water, Rey.” He could feel her smile against the back of his neck - his skin could almost be tingling as well.

Shadows beginning to lift, Ben could see the bumpy ascent of rock closed off the water, and when he stopped moving, the water stilled as well. Wherever it was flowing from, it wasn’t here.

“The channel. It’s stopped here.”

“Here? Then the crystals must be above us.” Rey squinted up the rock face; judging by the suffused light, it went up at an angle.

“Well, the water isn’t going further down. Weird. I thought there was a spring around here.”

“Maybe we can follow it up.”

“We can try.”

Water reached right up to Ben’s chest by the time he reached the far side, and he let Rey scramble off his back. She crouched on all fours, grinning at him, looking mildly uncomfortable, soaking up to his armpits. But he smiled when she offered her hand to him, and helped him climb up after her.

The wall was slightly damp, with patches of moss tucked into cracks and crevices. More curtains of vines flowed over them, which they had to pull apart on their climb up. A soft rushing sound came through, which Rey took for the wind… Ben had a feeling it might be something else. Gleaming in the shadow, mostly buried in the golden-brown stone… a tiny star. A small fragment of pearlescent white-silver… the Force offered a bright note to match it, suspended in the air… kyber crystal. Ben’s hand dropped back, instinctively, and caught Rey’s for an encouraging squeeze.

The rushing was still muffled by foliage, but it grew clearer as they came higher… it came from… the rock dropped a few feet to the side, and a crisp, cold spray filled the air beyond.

“Rey… the spring…”

“Can I see… oh, it’s so clear!”

A shallow stream of crystalline water was coursing down, past the drop-off. Coming from where they were climbing up to, whatever was up there.

“Much clearer. Do you see? See how fast it’s going.”

“I see!”

“We must be close now.”

A small constellation of tiny fallen stars littered the rock, sparkling in the dappled light. Each one would easily fit on a fingertip, but the harmony they all gave off was intense.

They climbed, unhurried, for a good ten minutes, passing a sprinkle of embedded crystals coaxing them on. Until the face levelled out enough for them both to sit down and stretch out, and the fresh stream had widened into a modest waterfall, feeding into a cataract. A round pool narrower than the channel beneath them, huge leaves casting shadow over the shimmering surface.

Rey groaned contentedly as she settled down, her legs hanging down lazily where they’d just come. Ben heavily folded himself down next to her, pulling off his tall boots so he could rub some feeling back into his feet and ankles.

“It’s beautiful up here…” she sighed, relishing the sunlight on her face.

“Absolutely…” he answered, gazing only at her, at the perfect soft smile lighting up her features.

Rey heaved her satchel down, and produced pears and flatbreads for them to share, and her full canteen of drinking water, which they took turns taking deep drinks from. Ben got to his feet and peered over the edge of the rock, calling the Force to take his consciousness to the bottom - and he saw crystals. Big, precious ones, that they’d come all this way to find. They must be down there, surely.

Rey raised her eyebrows, coy and curious. “If they’re not buried too deep, we could just raise the crystals to the surface with the Force, I suppose.”

Ben chided her, not unkindly, “Yeah, you suppose. Any actual ideas?”

“I don’t know, a bath? I want one. You certainly look like you need one.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome!” She was already unbuckling her belt, unhooking her holster. Ben grew restless at her removing stuff from her body with almost no reticence - until she unwound the wrappings on her arms. Exposing forearms that were marked by a small scatter of wonky white-pink gashes and scuffs, most of them unevenly faded.

“I wondered what you were hiding under your wraps.” Ben remarked, the gentleness of his voice surprising them both.

“Oh, these?” Rey huffed. “When you’re young and hungry and stupid, you don’t really care where you stick your arms looking for junk to sell,”

Ben slid his fingers softly over her scars, a somber frown tensing his brow.

Rey turned her left arm up, showing him a row of tiny white scratches along the soft underside, no more than a dozen or so, none of them longer than half an inch. “I did these myself. When I didn’t have a wall to mark instead. Keeping time by the moons turning.”

Her voice was flat and almost sullen, and Ben was just a little shaken. If she hadn’t been swept up by the war, maybe she’d still be haunting those dunes and junkyards to this day, drowning her loneliness in Knockback Nectar…

“What is that face, Ben?”

“Nothing.”

Ben knew he had to stop staring, as she shrugged off her painful old memories, and started on her tunic, unwinding her long wings of yellow sandsilk and baring more of her skin… Ben caught a glimpse of freckles littering her fine shoulders, and her soft belly… the wicked scar high up on her firm right arm that seemed to look like two grasping hands… Ben could feel his face burning, unsure where to turn his eyes.

“Do you really have to…?”

She let the bottom of her frock sweep through the water, rinsing out the streaks of green slime. Then her leggings. And the soft bindings she wore underneath. Her figure of softly-tanned skin crouched uncovered at the bank, smoothly curved, a star-chart of freckles across her back, and her hair laying in soft waves, just long enough to brush her shoulders. She looked like a mythic fair maiden from some ancient folk tale, a pretty face disguising a thousand dark legends… nevertheless, so far, Ben had seen fierce Rey, noble Rey, stubborn Rey… he’d never seen her like this, the intimacy between them in the Force notwithstanding. _She is beautiful, even if she won’t care to see it… she must have dreamed of this for a long time_ \- something in his chest twisted, heat sliding down, and not entirely unpleasantly.

“Rey… erm… there’s this miracle of modern society, you might have heard of, even if you haven’t actually seen it. It’s called modesty.”

Rey only laughed. She cheerily bounced into the water, nearly up to her shoulders in the pool, splashing with clumsy delight. Her laugh spurted louder and harsher by the sudden chill.

“Okay, fine… but, Ben - the lagoon must be draining into something. Maybe there’s a cave behind it! I’m going to see. And by the time we’ve had a look at this side, maybe found a hidden entrance or something, our clothes might be dry. Sorted!”

She drew her clothes out of the water, and spread them over the rocks so they could dry. Ben couldn’t forget she’d spent most of her life being a half-wild animal - just in a different climate. A world of water and plants and vigour was a dream for so much of that time… but once she’d learned enough about such a world, Rey could happily make herself at home.

“You can just stand there like a big red beacon-tower, or you can come with me… your decision. Even though, erm… I’d appreciate your help, if it’s too deep for me.”

In a sense, Ben had more experience with worlds like this, but at the same time, he didn’t. He was more familiar with scouring an environment in a shuttle, living off rations, and concentrating all his attention to ranks of troopers carrying out some mission. Never really getting a chance to see and hear and feel their surroundings. Masks carry a risk of letting whatever they hide become forgotten. Indeed, even if Rey was still on Jakku now, and Kylo Ren still commanded armies now, perhaps their bond would just have to keep biding its time…

But, now… it didn’t have to. _They_ didn’t have to.

“Rey, you could… uh, I could…”

The water could hide everything that wanted hiding, as Rey clambered and prowled across the rock like a ginntho spider. But far more delightful. Her face turned up to stare hotly at him, almost accusing. That was a look he knew.

“You’re pulling that face again…”

Despite the rosy heat in his cheeks, Ben had the nerve to raise an eyebrow. “I might have a cowl or something you can put on.”

Gaping in mock horror, she flung an armful of water towards him. “You cheeky bastard!”

Dripping, Ben crinkled his face as water ran from his hair and down his nose, but he didn’t dignify her with a reply. Dumping down his cape, Ben reached behind for his shirt, and yanked it off in one smooth movement, mussing his hair and sending drops flying. His broad, pale chest full in her field of vision, Rey visibly pinkened, hesitant to meet his eyes, but Ben still didn’t breathe a word as he stripped everything else off, until he was wearing nothing more than his pleased smirk.

“Right, how about that swimming lesson?”

Rey burst out a laugh, which fizzled out at the sight of him sliding into the pool, right up past his waist, flinching at the cold, before padding slowly up to her. Goosebumps rose all up Rey’s neck and shoulders, her heart stumbling for a beat, and it couldn’t have just been the cold. She forced herself not to let her gaze drop too low. Their eyes met briefly, and a strange, warm intuition twisted the dyad between them, trying to pull at each end, for a long moment.

Ben stopped when he reached her side, but with his back to her. “Well then, let’s go. Jump on.”

“What?”

“This was your idea.” Now he sounded slightly grumpy. Another laugh burst from Rey, a gentler one, as she hesitated, but then gladly wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and let him grab her legs, either side of his waist. A replica of what they were doing less than an hour ago. No big deal. Aside from them both being naked… but, no big deal. Surely.

Into the lagoon they went… admittedly finding each other’s skin giving them better purchase to hang on - as the water got deep considerably faster than anything else they’d waded into so far. It was _cold_ as well, and they needed to share whatever warmth they could take with them. Drawing deeper into the numbing, soaking embrace, they kept on towards the stony face, nothing more on their minds than holding on…

Ben leaned forward as the rock came into his reach, and his arm plunged forward into the water, until he felt a ridge. He had a good feeling of what was on the other side…

“Take a deep breath,”

“What? Are we - ”

“Rey, just trust me.” - a moment later they dropped their heads beneath the surface, the chill blasting through their skulls for a long moment… Rey squeezed her eyes shut, but Ben was brazen enough to catch a fuzzy glimpse of what was underwater…

The cavern wasn’t big, only about seven feet high, and a good half of it was underwater. Almost no daylight could slip through - but there was no need for it. Not when the cavern was aglow with kyber, a soft silver shine akin to a full moon on a clear night.

Crystals adorned the stone everywhere, littered above and below the water, some of them no bigger than markings on a star-chart, but many were larger. Heavy round ones as big as Varactyl eggs; heaped angular piles like fallen skyscrapers; scatterings of palm-sized gems ready to be screwed into a lightsaber… above their heads, sharp edges of crystal stood out like fresh scars, while below the surface, the crystals were smoothed by the current.

Once Rey’s eyes cracked open, they filled with dozens of tiny spotlights, her whole face going slack with wonder. “Wow…”

As she slid off his back, Ben eased himself down, and pushed his hair back from his wet eyes, exhaling deeply; his breath formed a big cloud of steam above them. This was as good as he’d hoped, if not better, being small and concealed. A whole galaxy, scaled down into a hidden remote corner. The Force welcomed them with an embrace of refreshing serenity, gentle harmony flowing through. The place begged to be meditated in.

Rey was smiling broadly, reminded of the amazement she’d felt the first time she’d seen a planet with grass and trees… and of how much she’d grown up since then, and yet the galaxy still had a few ways to awe her.

“I didn’t know what to expect, Ben… but, this is, just…”

“This is beauty, Rey…”

“Yes… I wish we could stay here forever.” she turned to him, crouched up to her chest in the pool, shimmering all around her, cheeks flushed with sheer delight.

Holding his hands out for her, she paddled up to him, presuming, correctly, this was just the start. He’d done this before, when he was younger than her, but his memory was still intact, and she wanted to know what he did. “You’ve never chosen one for yourself before, have you?”

“That’s right, what do I do?”

In honesty, Ben didn’t think himself a brilliant teacher, but there were enough things he was confident about. He rubbed some warmth into her little hands, offering some of his composure through the dyad.

“Listen to them. If one of them is going to be yours, you have to choose the right one.”

Rey nodded, and closed her eyes again.

Music surrounded her, flowed through her… threading through the chorus, one soft voice was singing to her… Rey slid her hands free and wriggled around, to fold herself down at the edge between water and stone. She pulled her arms to her shoulders, squeezing damp locks of her hair, pulled over a shoulder, and hugged her warmth close. She felt her harmony coming from here, and ran her fingertips over the clutches of crystal… one was warm. A single coal still burning in a cold fire, either a dying fire or just about to burst with flame…

Calling the Force to lift and focus her melody, Rey perched above her crystal for a few moments… and it slowly rose up from the rock, floating up towards her. She plucked it carefully from midair, and turned it over in her fingers, studying it, as she returned to Ben.

“This is the interesting part, Rey. What’s your favourite colour?” He asked without missing a beat.

She had to grin, enjoying the subdued excitement. “Is that important?”

“Well…”

“I know this is what determines the colour of the lightsaber blade. I thought certain colours were symbolic of skill and knowledge of the Force. Something like that.”

“You’re not quite right, but you’re close. The colour reflects your nature. What kind of Jedi you’re becoming. Normally it turns blue, for the most valiant fighters, or green for a master of life - but sometimes a different colour.”

His hands closed over hers again, the crystal sealed tight between her palms. The warmth from it bathed her skin, spread down her fingers, and flowed up her arms, touching every nerve in her body. Within kyber crystal, the Force was distilled and frozen, and Rey let its harmony melt into her own. The crystal could be the furnace in which her power could burn, her torch to carry, and ultimately, her weapon to wield.

And, as Rey felt the crystal attune itself to her, Ben let her hands open, and she got to see what had become of it. The charming thing was as long as her thumb, a rough teardrop shape… and its colourless form had changed, to a soft, buttery shade of yellow. It sparkled as the water ran beneath it, and as she held it up to see the light dance through it.

“Yellow… I like it.” Rey sighed happily.

“I’ve never seen anyone carry a yellow lightsaber before,” Ben admitted, “but I read that the guards of the Jedi Temple carried them.”

She nodded thoughtfully, and smiled sweetly as she gazed up at Ben; he wasn’t smiling as broadly as her, but his eyes were full of pride. His hand came up and stroked along the edge of her cheek. “Well, there you are, sweetheart, you’re one step closer to becoming a Jedi… how does that feel?”

“Feels strange… but it’s good, Ben. I’ve found another piece of myself… did it feel like that for you?”

Ben dropped his gaze, a cloud passing across his face. She’d stumbled across his memories, which carried a hint of pain that she could sense through the dyad. “I shouldn’t have asked. I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright.”

“Even if I didn’t find what I wanted from Luke, I don’t regret going to him. I did learn a few things.”

“You learned there’s more to a Jedi than the old stories people like to believe?”

“In a way… Ben, there was nothing personal between me and Luke. He told me, I’m young, I’ve got my life to live and a war to fight. Why would I want to have anything to do with old legends? And him?”

Ben huffed a laugh, his smile nonchalant, but slightly sad.

“You think it’s funny?”

Ben was silent for a long moment. “Rey… I envy you. You could always choose where your path will take you.”

Rey implored, “He told me he’d had nightmares of orphans swarming to him wanting to learn to lift rocks and see if they’re the next chosen one… not respecting the fact that the Force is _so much more than that_.”

“I know that - but this is nothing to do with him. This is yours.”

Rey reached for his face, stroking down his cheek, following the faint silhouette of his scar; in the mellow light it was almost invisible, but she knew his face off by heart. “Ben… it’s ours.”

Now, he let himself smile, really smile. She wrapped her arms around him in a hug, her face tucked beside his throat. Ben hesitated for a moment, but then tightened his arms round her, his big hand smoothing down the slope of her head, her wet hair sliding between his fingers, and he pressed his lips gently against her forehead. An awkward hug, as both of them were crouched half underwater; she shifted her legs, trying to get into a good position, and ended up with her legs either side of him - they drew apart just before it got too awkward. Letting the water and the soft creamy glow cradle their bare skin again.

“You must choose one too, Ben.”

“I have one.” he replied.

“A bleeding one. It hurts you when you use it, I can feel it…”

He tensed suddenly; Rey was right, and he hated the fact that she knew this. And she wished she didn’t know. “I wasn’t trying to upset you or anything - ”

“I know. I did want to see if I could heal it.”

“Can you do that?” Rey recalled how the two of them had tapped into healing powers in their dyad, but they’d only made the best use of it on each other so far.

“It’s possible to heal a bleeding crystal, with the light side of the Force, I’m just not exactly sure how to do it yet… and I didn’t want to try it here.”

“I’m not asking you to. I bet healing that thing won’t be easy… and we can worry about that another time.”

“Yes. Not here.”

She tucked her hand under his, and let his fingers lace through hers, marvelling at how his hand dwarfed hers. “Just try it, Ben. Maybe one of them will sound good to you.” she urged.

“Alright. If you insist.”

She kept her hand resting on his as he meditated. His Force-print deepened, growing quiet and intense, hovering through the chorus of harmonies.

And without warning, he hoisted himself up - his tallness nearly filling the enclosed space - peering into a glowing cluster above his head. An arm extended upwards, to lay a hand against the rock… hmm, what a fine set of abs he has - _stop that, this is serious_ \- his eyes closed again, and he listened for any of those subtle notes humming through the Force, that just might playing for him…

Minutes crawling past, it grew so quiet, with little enough space, that Rey could almost hear her lungs pushing against the weight of the water… mildly distracted by a little more of Ben stretching up from the water’s surface, the bevelled ripples of his ribs, with goosebumps all along the taut skin over them… and even lower, where a delicate streak of hair ran teasingly down his belly - _stop staring! You’re such a pervert! This is important!_ \- and the slight gasp from him plucked her from her reverie…

He’d found one that called to him, against his expectations. And he called back to it, until it emerged from its cluster and floated towards his free hand.

Ben returned to the water, a priceless expression of humble gratitude on his face, and a crystal to call his own in his hands. It was smaller than Rey’s, a roughly rounded brick-shape, and it looked even smaller against the great size of his palm.

In a reflection of their first ritual, Rey laid her hand onto Ben’s, clasping the crystal, and it took on a bright, frosty, silver-blue. A rare, pale blue that hadn’t been seen in a saber blade for an age. Blue and yellow, matching the warpaint on their Marauder, and a balance of their spirits. Snow and sand. Ocean and fire. Steel and gold. Sky and sunshine.

The cold was starting to get to Rey by this time, Ben could feel it too. So, again diving through the watery entrance together, they crossed through the deep pool and into the shallow end, to their clothes and belongings laid out by the edge. Short of anywhere else to put them, Rey rolled her crystal in one end of one if her arm wrappings, and Ben followed, wrapping his in the other end. They deftly rolled all the fabric round each bundle, until it made a fat cloth scroll. The other arm wrap was wrapped around them both, and the crystals could be snuggled safely into a pocket of Rey’s satchel.

They’d done it. They’d got themselves a kyber gem each, as Jedi had done by the thousand before them, for generations - after finding a hidden treasure of a cavern, small and secret. It would soon pass back into obscurity, with no way of knowing who might want to come to Utapau seeking kyber crystals after them… maybe they’d show this place to future Jedi, maybe their own children… not that they were even considering any of that. All that was on their minds, in that moment, was the joy of their completed mission.

However, if they left the pool altogether, they’d still be partly in shade, and with their clothes close enough to dry on the rocks, what could they wrap themselves up with? The best thing Ben could decide to use was the cape, the one thing that was already dry, as its oiled surface shed all the water, spread out at the edge of the pool. Grabbing round her hips, he lifted Rey up and out of the water, sat her down onto the fabric, and then folded the cape over her. It wasn’t very thick, but thankfully it was warm and supple, and the great flowing thing engulfed Rey from her face to her knees.

Ben couldn’t fight down his grin at the sight of her; her eyes peeking from above the swathe of grey, and her legs daintily tucked together beneath, still mostly in the water, she was plainly adorable… beguiling. Her fingers teased the edge of the fabric, as if wondering how much of her body she might let him see. A redundant point, as they’d just been cavorting naked together in the cave and underwater, surely… oh, but now they were in the bright, open air, with no distortion. No stinging in their eyes, no straining in their lungs. They could take their time. And they’d have all the time in the world.

Ben’s hands stroked her arms over the cape, and held her gaze just as gently.

“Rey… I want…”

He seemed unsure what else to do, besides let his head bow down and rest his forehead against hers… the feeling of trust Rey had wanted so badly, was within reach at last. And why wouldn’t it be?

She asked him, “What do you want, Ben?”

Here they were, alone together surrounded by all the freedom they could need. No need to be afraid to give a voice to what was in their hearts… no need to think on what might happen away from this planet, this lagoon, this moment… if Rey just wanted to reach out and touch him, she could. And she did, wrapping her fingers around his forearm, before tugging his arm towards her - he hadn’t expected that.

“You don’t know where to start?” Her voice was silken.

She could tell, if she pored through the dyad, he was shy to touch her, behind the curiosity in his eyes. She was so small and dainty next to him - and more than capable of beating the shit out of him… but they had long not been enemies.

“I’ll help you.”

A sweetly encouraging smile on her face, Rey pulled his hands up, under the fabric and towards her torso, letting Ben trail his fingers over her shoulders. His hands slipped round and onto her back, as if to gauge how warm she was - certainly not as cold as she was, that’s good… wrapping her in his arms, Rey in turn ran her hands up his chest, fingertips smearing the drops on his skin, leaving warm trails. Ben stroked down her back, his thumb bumping along the ridge of her spine, and then back up to her shoulders, squeezing gently - ohh, nice… then over her chest, the cape falling open enough for them to see. Rey dropped her gaze from his face to her breasts, seeing no reason to hide them in her arms, but nervous nonetheless.

“They’re small, aren’t they?”

Yes, they were small. Ben didn’t need to slide his obnoxiously large hands over them to prove it further.

“They’re perfect.”

Rey was lost for words at his answer - and she had to just gasp, her nipples stiffening under the velvety warmth of his palms… Ben sighed, unable to help blushing. Her shoulders were supple from years of harsh sun and heavy loads, but her breasts were so soft…

“I love those warm hands, Ben.”

His breath was coming out shaking, his voice tremulous. “Erm… thanks.”

She slid her hands up, her fingers carding through his slick hair, until her thumbs stroked over soft patches of skin behind his ears. “I want some of your warmth… give me some…”

He pulled her even closer, until the cape slid off one of her shoulders. Neither of them could care, though, as they had to just savour each other, the bliss of feeling each other’s bare skin swallowing them both...

“Ben… kiss me.”

Taking a nervous careful breath, he swallowed, and pressed his lips together for a moment, before planting the softest kiss he could, just between her brows… he drew his head back slowly to see her reaction - she was bemused, her eyes swimming with sweet agony ready to boil into laughter or tears… and her gaze drifted to his lips, eyeing them like she’d indulgently dreamed of kissing him for untold ages. They parted in quiet realisation.

“Oh. You meant - ”

Rey felt her laugh bubbling in the pit of her chest, but she let the momentum of it propel her mouth towards his… the kiss was bruising and hungry, almost too hard… Ben steadied her with his hand at the back of her neck, letting the kiss soften. He was trying not to tremble too much, which got harder as the kiss lingered, until Rey had to gasp for breath.

“Oh, Ben… you feel good…”

He so did… his other hand kneaded her back, while he nuzzled at the corner of her mouth. He seemed to be holding onto her like he’d almost lost her, so gentle, yet tinged with intense trepidation.

“You’re the one who’s good, Rey…” he mumbled into her ear. A heartbeat later, she had both hands on his cheeks and was kissing him again, as soft and unhurried as the forehead kiss she’d received a minute ago. Their nerves soothed, Rey let Ben tuck between her legs again, almost without a thought, and she just kept up the kiss while sliding arms around those broad shoulders that were starting to feel like home… in turn, Ben got his hands round her waist, happy to find she had skin to grab onto, lean and fit as she was - but he froze as she gasped at the feel of him stroke down her hips.

“Ben, I… I don’t want… how can… how would we…”

This was all brand new for Rey. It scared the stuffing out of her, and excited her just as much. But she’d made a habit of holding back from such a rush a long time ago, which got even more ingrained as the Force had awoken in her life… Ben’s feelings were just as intense, bleeding into her consciousness, a slight tremble still lingering in his chest.

“It’s okay. We don’t have to.”

Thank goodness. Reaching out through the dyad, they found soothing warmth and undemanding bliss.

Before long, they dressed and collected themselves, and continued on their climb. It didn’t take them long to get to something resembling a road: broad and flat, and leading into a tunnel of smooth brown earth. A row of short plinths bearing spotlights led the way, and the path ran upwards on a slight gradient, just steep enough to suggest they were on their way back to civilisation.

Rey tucked an arm round Ben’s, and hours leisurely passed as they ambled together in contented silence. The tunnel eventually opened up, revealing a tier of apartments carved into stone above them. Archways, terraces, pavilions, delicate cyan glows in windows. But they stayed on their path, smooth stone leading towards a strip of more modest structures.

When, at last, they reached the edge of the strip, a Pau’an woman was coming out to greet them, tall and elegant and robed in deep pink, and a lamp in her hand, giving off a creamy glow that licked against the great racks of ribs standing here and there, marking the entrance to a path deep into the cave. Ben and Rey kept their distance at first, both cautious and tired. Ben had lowered himself to the floor, close to an arching tunnel of curving bones, just big enough to comfortably accommodate the two of them. Rey stayed upright, so she could greet the woman - she was noble and solid, and kindly, and Rey was glad for a warm reception. She returned to Ben a few minutes later, bearing an armful of thick red blankets, an orange bar of soap, a comb of gleaming polished ivory, and a straight razor to match, the blade sharpened into a perilous edge as keen as steel.

“Her name’s Tojo. She said the nights get cold round here, so we can stay in this ribcage and sleep here.”

They spread one blanket under the bones, and pinned it down with their heaviest things.

“There’s a communal ‘fresher over there. Breakfast is an hour after sunrise.”

The distant cries and shrieks of birds and dactillions, even the long, fluid, ululating voices of Varactyl, they all danced in the air, threatening a sleepless night to sleepers in the open air. But after a long, fruitful day of wandering through the wilds, absorbing all their beauty… Ben didn’t take long to succumb to sleep.

His great face seemed to shed years in the mellow light, and Rey felt her heart move… how long had it been since he knew a peace like this? And how long had she? She kissed his forehead, brushed her nose into his hair. He smelled of the delicately spiced soap, though the stubble still remained on his jaw and cheeks. He was beautiful, she couldn’t deny it, ever since she’d first laid eyes on his face… when they were nothing more than enemies, before the Force had them start their strange dance… duels, and arguments, and confessions later, here they were, still together, but now at peace… a peace they could take to bed.

She wanted him. Oh, how she wanted him. But he was fast asleep, and she knew too little about how exactly to do anything, and he didn’t know that much more, and she didn’t want their first time to dissolve into fumbling, over-hesitant, undignified mortification… even if they might be brazen enough to actually have a go, she was still frightened of it going badly… yet she _still wanted him…_ her insides were tense and heavy and screwing up like rusted metal being crunched to pieces, to the point where she liked the idea of her skin ripping open. From crotch upwards. Yes.

Checking one more time that Ben was safely out for the count, Rey curled the blanket around herself, lay with her back to him, and slid her hand down her belly, and into the shock of rough hair between her legs. If only she could yank her frustration out through her smooth cleft… if she wasn’t ready now for Ben to kiss beneath her belt, when would she be? …but she could imagine, how it might feel to have Ben pin her hips still, and lap up all the warmth pooling there… she wanted to writhe beneath him, holding onto the weight of him over her. She wanted him to empty her and fill her up again…

But her blankets would have to do, for this time. Cocooned in soft layers, Rey rubbed herself until her nerves were burning, her thighs shaking and the flesh between them wet and satisfyingly aching. For a moment, she was pleased, but that faded too. Even she wasn’t gentle with herself, just as nobody had been. Until Ben had let her into his arms… he’d already let her ride him, in a manner, and they’d discovered the stars beneath Utapau’s gorgeous wildness… Ben Solo, that rudely large creature of lean muscle and leaner wit, had caressed her like nobody ever had before, and maybe nobody ever would…

And she didn’t want to cheapen the dyad. She couldn’t bear the thought of hurting Ben with her unrefined demeanour, her stunted maturity, her hunger to absorb everything the galaxy could offer that he might not want to try to satisfy. But that was beside the point. She knew the living Force wasn’t infinite. They would both have to nurture their bond, every day, to keep it at its strongest. But could they love each other too? She hoped so. Both of them were still only human, tiny things compared to the might of the universe.

Her eyes swam, and hot tears escaped down her face. She dabbed them away, and then pushed the blanket off so the night air might cool her skin.

 _Why_ did she have to feel like this?

Sighing deeply, Rey at last began to drift off, nothing left for her to worry about.

Ben woke up first, to the suffused yellow glow rising from the eastern edge of the world. He honestly couldn’t remember the last time he’d woken up like this, far away from any trace of any unrest, wild animals singing in the distance… and a lovely young lady still asleep next to him? Now that certainly was a first.

Her bareness was covered only by a fold of the blanket, her softened face creased by the heaviness of her sleep, and a dried, pale streak of something smeared down her thigh. Taking a moment to realise, embarrassment shuddered down Ben’s back, waking him up in earnest. Yet… dear sweet Rey, she’d wanted to be close to him, be held by him, with nothing, not even clothing, between them, except the clear cold water. Their trip here, so far, had been sublime, and she was sleeping like she was happy. Ben reached into the dyad for her Force-print… and it was blazing and glorious to rival the sun, and it only grew brighter when she woke up.

“Slept well?” she asked placidly, pulling her covers over her.

Ben felt his heart swell, almost unable to bear so much. Maybe this would be the first of years of mornings, waking up next to one another. Well, once the war was over for good, they’d have that to look forward to.

“I’m glad we got in a good night’s sleep, sweetheart.”  
  
“Oh yeah?”

“There’s still an awful lot out there for us to explore...”

Rey crawled a hand up his arm, a perfectly relaxed smile on her face. “I’m not rushing.”


End file.
